Pulitzer Prize for Fiction 2020 Reaction Video

The 2020 #PulitzerPrize for fiction has been announced, and I have opinions.

The winner:
The Nickel Boys, by Colson Whitehead. "A spare and devastating exploration of abuse at a reform school in Jim Crow-era Florida that is ultimately a powerful tale of human perseverance, dignity and redemption."
The finalists:
The Topeka School, by Ben Lerner. "A brilliant and ambitious exploration of language, family and American identity as exemplified by the life of a Midwestern high school debate champion."
The Dutch House, by Ann Patchett. "A masterful and beautifully rendered allegory of the destructive force of social ambition on several generations of a Pennsylvania family."

Further viewing:

But wait, there's more!

[lonesomedovecall]

Wow! I read Whitehead's "Underground Railroad" shortly after it was released and loved it -- didn't even know it had won the Pulitzer Prize. I've been meaning to read "The Nickel Boys" but haven't picked up a copy yet... and, again, didn't know it was even nominated for a Pulitzer. (I don't really follow that stuff, as you can probably tell, LOL.) Now that I know it HAS won, I'll DEFINITELY be moving that title closer to the top of my TBR!!! Good for Whitehead! That's awesome; two Pulitzer's in three years?!?!? That's amazing!

[deirdre]

Norman Malier was the only author to win both the fiction and non-fiction Pulitzer. Quite an accomplishment.

[EricKarlAnderson]

Well done on predicting the shortlist! I've not read The Topeka School yet but I'm very happy The Nickel Boys won. And that's really interesting about how there are now 4 authors that have won twice. Yes, maybe a female author one day! I'm hoping Joyce Carol Oates will win it one day - she's been shortlisted 5 times but never won. It'd be interesting to know who has been shortlisted the most.

[billyjustus]

I always enjoy your prize videos. Thanks for doing them! Colson Whitehead certainly deserved a second Pulitzer. I appreciated that he took the subject matter head-on rather than elliptically. For women, I would like to see Donna Tartt win again. Same for Elizabeth Strout.

Though, I'm not necessarily sold on the prize being more competitive. All prizes are inherently subjective. Look at the judges and you can guess from a longlist who gets on the shortlist and who the likely winner will be. I'm still waiting for an explanation about why Louise Erdrich hasn't won the Pulitzer. Echo that for Jesmyn Ward. I'm also bitter about Poisonwood Bible not winning when it was a finalist. (Found it far more relevant and powerful than The Hours, which won.)

[myreadinglife]

Very frustrating to not be able to express my opinion on The Nickel Boys! 😂

[HannahsBooks]

Oh yes—definitely Jesmyn Ward! At least one Pulitzer.

[Tensytheneedlesmith]

I am not a fan of Whitehead. I didn't like Underground Railroad and wasn't interested in picking up NIckel Boys, but your review may encourage me to give it a try. Topeka School is on my TBR list especially since I live in Kansas and the author grew up in Topeka. His mother is a well known psychologist (she worked at the Menninger Clinic in Topeka) and I read her book The Dance of Anger in the 80s. I love that the Sontag biography won for biography. While I love Patchett's books, I don't think that The Dutch House was Pulitzer material. I think Deborah Levy should be a contender for the Pulitzer for her novels.

[sofiareads]

I’ve started to reading a lot of books nominated for bookish prizes so I love watching these reaction videos. I haven’t read any of these so they’re all going on the tbr pile!

[ameliareads]

I had the same problems with the Nickel Boys as I had with The Underground Railroad, but this time even more. I was really interested in both topics, but for some parts both books felt like reading nonfiction and not a novel. And there's nothing wrong with that, especially when both novels are based on real events, but if I read a novel, I expect a novel. I also agree, that I don't want to get the feeling of being emotionally manipulated, but I also don't want to feel kept on a distance from a story. And that's unfortunately the case for me with Colson Whitehead's writing, therefore I never felt really involved into both of these stories, so I felt disappointed in the end. Both have been three star reads for me, but actually The Underground Railroad more than The Nickel Boys, because the latter also had an ending that kind of annoyed me, because for me it felt like the style of the book switched all of a sudden and in my opinion unnecessarily.

[KDbooks]

Now, I’m at the end of the video, I would adore if Tartt won again on her next book (whenever that will be!)

Also, I love Hanya Yanagihara. Both her novel were spectacular to me. Would be great to see her win.

[KDbooks]

I didn’t know he won it before? Well done Mr Whitehead.

Next year, you need to double down and choose the book you DON’T think will win. Based on previous videos, your odds might improve!!! That’s how maths works, yeah?

[dman]

Jesmyn Ward is also very young. Hanya Yanagihara maybe too.

[flanplan]

The nickel boys was amazing but boy was it harrowing (not that I mind harrowing reads, I have a pretty strong stomach for those kids of books), especially once you realize that the events that happened in the book actually did happen in real life, and the reform school in the book was based off of a real reform school that operated for 111 years…

[BookishTexan]

I didn't know that only four writers have won the prize twice. Kind of a weird collection -- Booth Tarkington? I can't believe Toni Morrison didnt win it more than once. Whitehead is better than Updike at least. I don't know much about Tarkington's work.
Thanks for the kind words about my review and the link.

[kelly_hunsaker_reads]

I liked the book too. Though, I preferred The Underground Railroad

[layab]

Many booktubers had recommended The Nickel Boys in the past. I couldn't get it but now I have got it so I will put it in my TBR.

[bookwalk]

I do think there is a fine line between a reader feeling emotionally invested and emotionally manipulated. When an author threads their way between the two I think they are regarded as producing a fine product.
I was disappointed in The Nickel Boys. I did feel that the author thought the events of the book would emotionally pull me in. I would have enjoyed it more if Whitehead had delved into the character’s inner feelings more. It was a good book for me but not a great one.
I have read Ann Patchett’s book and also thought it was good, but not great. I have not read The Topeka School and I hear such dichotomous opinions about it I think I will leave it alone.
It seems to me, I wonder if I am in the minority here, that the Pulitzer finalists were weaker than in the past.
I hope Donna Tartt has a shot in the future with her next book, whenever that is. I think The Goldfinch was excellent. I want to read more of her works.
I am s-I-o-w-l-y listening to Ducks, Newburyport. To me it doesn’t matter that she doesn’t live here, she still captures the essence of an America perspective in this book. However, I do have a hard time with stream of consciousness books. Also because most sentences start with “The fact is...” causes a stagnation in the writing for me.

[mradcaqbdb]

I’m thrilled that The Nickel Boys won. It was my #1 fiction book last year, #2 overall. Without even knowing which books it was up against, I thought it should win. Yesterday, I googled to find out who the finalists were and was frankly underwhelmed. I wasn’t familiar with criticisms of The Nickel Boys, but like you, I didn’t feel manipulated by it. This booked grabbed me immediately and never let me go. I still have to read The Underground Railroad and I may head to that soon. I just got Homegoing last week. I’ll be sure to read it after The Underground Railroad. 😉😂

Regarding Jesmyn Ward, what books of hers do you recommend? I have the ebook of Sing, Unburied Sing, but haven’t read it yet. Is that the best place to start?

[jacquelinemcmenamin]

Can I admit that Ij didn’t get The Topeka School? I loved The Dutch House 🏡 The Nickel Boys was way too short and rushed. However it’s a good book. I don’t know what goes through the minds of book prize judges.

[dottiesbookchitchat]

I think Marilynne Robinson has an excellent chance of winning two awards! Later this year she has another book in her Gilead series coming out! I would love to see Jasmyn Ward win! I completely agree it’s only a matter of time before she wins and she is young so she definitely could win twice! And the other woman I would put in the mix would be Louise Erdrich!